R.G. Mitchell
R.G. Mitchell Children's Rides Ltd. (also known as Mitchell's Childrens Rides) was a British kiddie ride company located in Skegness, England. It was founded by Robin Guthrie Mitchell (the namesake of the company) in 1959, and was bought out by Photo-Me PLC in 2006, trading as Jolly Roger Amusement Rides Ltd. RGM's kiddie rides are often regarded as some of the most popular and most high-quality seen in the world, receiving several awards for their innovative and interactive features, such as "rolling road" '''display screens, '''button-and-prompt-type interactive games, Plug-&-Play '''timers which require minimal manual setup from an owner or operator, '''soft start '''and '''finish to prevent unexpected stopping and starting, and the use of large, well-known licenses, such as Thomas The Tank Engine & Friends, Budgie The Little Helicopter, ''and ''Thunderbirds. Background R.G. Mitchell Children's Rides Ltd. was founded by the late Robin Guthrie Mitchell in 1959. Initially a family business, Robin worked alongside his wife, Barbara, and later his son, the late Robin Jr. Many external staff were hired as members of the business over the years. Shortly after founder Robin's death in 2006, the company came under acquisition by Photo-Me PLC, trading as Jolly Roger Amusement Rides Ltd., whom made use of their Skegness manufacturing facility and continued to build their rides, releasing them under their own name. In early 2019, a rumour had spread about Photo-Me scrapping many of their older RGM rides. After direct contact with staff, this rumour was debunked and proven as false, in that Photo-Me have no intent of scrapping some of their highest-grossing machines. Kiddie Rides Main Article: List Of RG Mitchell Kiddie Rides In its time of independent operation, RGM designed over 50 different ride models, each with their own characteristics, personality, license (or lackthereof) and interactive features. These models were largely produced in masses and shipped worldwide both by the company themselves and through distributors' sales. RGM's rides were each built to their own, but using common models of ride bases, primary control boards, headlights, and "rolling road" display screens. RGM issued seven different types of ride bases; two types which move in a up-and-down rocking motion, two types which move in a back-and-forth sliding motion, a type which moves in a 90-degree rotating motion, a type which moves in a gyrating motion, and a type which spins. These bases are used on different rides and are often selected as per the ride's size, weight, and subject matter. For example, the NASA Rocket features a base which moves in a 90-degree rotating motion '''due to its tall stature and subject matter of a rocket ship. Most rides released after the year 1996 feature bases with a '''back-and-forth sliding motion, such as Alpha-Ted, the Hank series, and newer releases of the 4-Track series. All RGM rides run standardly with a 240V motor. RGM Used different coin mechs over the years. From 1959-early 1990's, they used the S1 Coin mechs. Ever since Multi-Mechs were introduced, they used the NRI Coin mech, and since 2000's-2006, they used the Mars 330 Coin mechs with a middle-sized plate. RGM used a variety of control boards over its time: * The Stamar System 2000 PCBs were the first to be used by RGM, from when the company opened until acquisition of better technology. RGM did not use prompt messages with these PCBs. These timers were often reused by Jolly Roger Amusement Rides when required throughout their refurbishment and rebuilding of RGM's rides. * PCM-001 '''and '''PCM-002 PCBs were first introduced in the early 1990s and primarily used on rides released up until 1994, such as the Sports Racer, early releases of Thomas The Tank Engine & Friends, Budgie The Little Helicopter, Jimbo & The Jet-Set, Thunderbird 1 and 2, early releases of the NASA Rocket, and several others. These PCBs are generally characterised by their ability to hold up to eight basic-type EEPROM data chips and their obnoxious prompt messages voiced by Robin Mitchell, Sr. * PCM-Version 3 '''PCBs were first introduced in 1995 and primarily used on rides released up until the year 2000, such as Alpha-Ted, 4-Track, Mr. Softy's Ice Cream Van, The Story Teller, early releases of Postman Pat and Fireman Sam, and most releases of Thomas The Tank Engine & Friends. These PCBs are generally characterised by their abilities to hold up to 16 EEPROM data chips and the capacity for interactive games, such as those featured on the Alpha-Ted ride, along with two variants of prompt messages voiced by Barbara Mitchell. * '''BOT-1 '''PCBs were first introduced in 2000 and used on all rides released up until the company's acquisition by Jolly Roger Amusement Rides. These PCBs are aesthetically similar to '''PCM-Version 3 PCBs, but are able to hold more data for higher-level interactive games, such as featured on the Fred's Fire Truck ride, and external peripherals such as video screens and cameras, as featured on the Dodgem and Captain Nemo rides. The prompt messages featured on these PCBs are voiced by Robin Mitchell, Jr. Ride Refurbishment Several RGM Rides Have Been Refurbished By Jolly Roger. These Use The Stamar Announcements (Usually With Some BOT-1 Messages As Well). RGM Rebuilt The OMC Postman Pat Ride In 1997 With Added Featured. They Did The Same To Fireman Sam In 1998. Prompt Messages Each control board featured its own individual voice messages, to prompt users on actions such as to when to press the START button to begin your ride, when more coins are required, and when the ride is over. Some rides use their own personalised messages, such as licensed or heavily themed rides, whereas others use standardised messages, such as generic rides. Additionally, attract sounds are often heard on RGM rides when inactive for 120 seconds. The most common is laughing kids. These messages are very popular among ride fans, as they are recordable and may vary depending on a ride unit. Messages which have been sighted by fans include: Exclusive to Hungary, the messages on the RGM Rides are in Hungarian. Generic Messages Insufficient Funds V1: "Please add more coins now." (Robin Mitchell) V2 (old): "Please add more money!" (Barbara Mitchell) V2: "Please add another coin." (Barbara Mitchell) V''3: ''"You have to add more coins!" (Robin Mitchell, Jr.) Press START Button V1: "Press START, now." (Robin Mitchell, Jr.) V2 (old): "Please push the START button." (Barbara Mitchell) V2: "Please push the START button!" (Barbara Mitchell) V3: "When you're ready, press the START button!" (Robin Mitchell III) End of Ride V1: "Bye for now, I hope to hear from you again soon" (Robin Mitchell, Jr.) V2 (old): "Thank you for riding with us, come back soon" (Barbara Mitchell) V2: "Thank you for riding with us, come back soon" (Barbara Mitchell) V3: "Thanks for riding with us, come back soon" (Robin Mitchell III) ''' = '''Themed Messages Insufficient Funds "Please add another coin" (Toytown Playtime Car) (Robin Mitchell, Jr.) "Please add more coins" (Huggy Bear) (Robin Mitchell, Jr.) "Please add more coins" (Teddy Bears Picnic) (Robin Mitchell, Jr.) End of Ride "Bye for now, I hope to hear from you again soon" (PC-001) (Toytown Playtime Car) (Robin Mitchell, Jr.) "Thank you for riding with us, come back soon" (Mk 1) (PC-002) (Barbara Mitchell) "Thank you for riding with us, come back soon" (Mk 2) (V3) (Barbara Mitchell) "Thanks for riding with us, come back soon" (BOT-1) (actor unknown) Press START Button "Press START, now" (PC-001) (Robin Mitchell, Jr.) "Please push the START button" (Mk 1) (PC-002) (Barbara Mitchell) "Please push the START button" (Mk 2) (V3) (Barbara Mitchell) "When you're ready, press the START button" (V3) (Robin Mitchell III) * "5, 4, 3, 2, 1! Press Start Now!" (Voiced By Peter Dayley And Robin Mitchell Jr) (Thunderbirds Rides, 1994) * "Please add another coin" (Voiced By Richard Priess) (Used On Budgie, 1994) * "Please push the Start Button" (Voiced By Richard Priess) (Used On Budgie, 1994) * "Thanks for flying with me, come back soon" (Voiced By Richard Priess) (Used On Budgie, 1994). * "Wanneer u klaar bent, drukt u op de START-knop!" (Voiced By Robin Mitchell III NL Language) (Used On V2 ANWB, 2001) * "Bedankt voor het rijden, kom snel terug" (Voiced By Tommy) (Used On V2 ANWB, 2001) * "Hello, I'm Matthew Corbett. Please push the "Start" Button" (Voiced By Matthew Corbett) (Used On Sooty And Co, 1996) * "Thank you for riding with Sooty and Co, come back soon" (Voiced By Matthew Corbett) (Used On Sooty And Co, 1996) * "Hey kids, welcome to Hank's Hot Dog Van! If you're feeling hungry, press the Start Button" (Used On Hank's Hotdog Van, 2000) * "Hey kids, welcome to my cool Ice Cream Van. If you're feeling hungry, press the Start button" (Used On Hank's Ice Cream Van, 2000) * "Hey kids, push my Start Button for some wild, wet fun!" (Used On Pelican Pete's Coastwatch Boat, 2000) * "So long guys, see ya later." (Used On Pelican Pete's Coastwatch Boat, 2000) * "The ride is about to begin... please stand clear!" (Voiced By Michael Angelis) (Beginning message On The Funtime Carousel, 2002) * "Please remain seated, until the ride has stopped!" (Voiced By Michael Angelis) (End of ride message On The Funtime Carousel, 2002) * "When you're ready, push my start button" (Used On Huggy Bear, 2002) * "Hey that was a cool ride, come back soon" (Used On Huggy Bear, 2002) See Also Jolly Roger Amusement Rides Photo-Me Category:Kiddie Ride Companies